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So, I was thinking this morning…what on earth is St. Patrick’s Day?  Does anyone know?!  What are we celebrating?  Who is St. Patrick?  What’s the point of it all, really?  Why green?  Why the pinching?  Why the green beer…which, I mean really, seems very disgusting, if you ask me? 

Here’s some info I got from the History Channel website.  It really clears things up. 🙂

St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, is one of Christianity’s most widely known figures. But for all his celebrity, his life remains somewhat of a mystery. (uh, yeah, that’s my problem). Many of the stories traditionally associated with St. Patrick, including the famous account of his banishing all the snakes from Ireland, are false, the products of hundreds of years of exaggerated storytelling.

In modern-day Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day has traditionally been a religious occasion. In fact, up until the 1970s, Irish laws mandated that pubs be closed on March 17. Beginning in 1995, however, the Irish government began a national campaign to use St. Patrick’s Day as an opportunity to drive tourism and showcase Ireland to the rest of the world (aha…it’s all about Ireland making money!)

The first St. Patrick’s Day parade took place not in Ireland, but in the United States. Irish soldiers serving in the English military marched through New York City on March 17, 1762. Along with their music, the parade helped the soldiers to reconnect with their Irish roots, as well as fellow Irishmen serving in the English army. (Ok, well that at least makes sense…the dudes were homesick.)

This I like: 

The shamrock, which was also called the "seamroy" by the Celts, was a sacred plant in ancient Ireland because it symbolized the rebirth of spring. By the seventeenth century, the shamrock had become a symbol of emerging Irish nationalism. As the English began to seize Irish land and make laws against the use of the Irish language and the practice of Catholicism, many Irish began to wear the shamrock as a symbol of their pride in their heritage and their displeasure with English rule.

I heard this morning that we wear green because Ireland is referred to as the "Emerald Isle". 

So there you go, a little history lesson on St. Patricks Day.  Still seems a little ridiculous to me.  Just another excuse for people to drink beer and wear outrageous hats.  But then again, I’m not Irish.